Medicina
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Background and Objectives: In 2004, the Health Administration of Taiwan began to promote a hospital-based cancer screening quality improvement program, under the principle that "prevention is better than therapy". The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of colorectal cancer (CRC) screening in patients who received a fecal immunochemical test (FIT) at a hospital in central Taiwan. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study. ⋯ Conclusions: In this study, screening with FIT significantly increased the early detection of CRC. The main advantage of FIT is the non-invasiveness and low cost. It is hoped that the further adoption of early screening can increase the detection rates of colorectal polyps or early cancer to improve survival, reduce the high cost of subsequent cancer treatment, and reduce the burden on the patient and healthcare system.
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Background and objectives: Teverelix drug product (DP) is a gonadotropin-releasing hormone antagonist in development for the treatment of patients with prostate cancer in whom androgen deprivation therapy is indicated. The aim of this paper is to present the results of five Phase 2 studies that assessed the pharmacokinetics, pharmacodynamics, efficacy and safety of different loading dose regimens of teverelix DP. Methods: Five single-arm, uncontrolled clinical trials were conducted in patients with advanced prostate cancer. ⋯ Conclusions: Teverelix DP is safe and well tolerated. Castrate levels of testosterone can be rapidly achieved following the subcutaneous injection of teverelix DP on 3 consecutive days. Streamlining of the administration of the loading dose and identifying a suitable maintenance dose will be investigated in future trials.
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A 54-year-old woman on dialysis due to chronic renal failure had a fever lasting 2 weeks and was referred to a hospital. Non-enhanced CT and blood tests showed no remarkable findings. She was hospitalized and received an antibacterial drug. ⋯ Thereafter, she received treatment as an outpatient. Since the use of a contrast medium was complicated by dialysis, a non-enhanced CT was performed at first, and it was difficult to make a diagnosis from this. We report this as an informative case that could be diagnosed with EBUS-TBNA, which was easily performed on a patient weakened by prolonged fever and dialysis.
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Objectives: Malnutrition is frequently seen in stroke patients. Malnutrition worsens the prognosis and increases the mortality rate in acute ischemic stroke patients. Malnutrition is a significant factor not only in the initiation of infection but also in its progression. ⋯ Compared to high PNI scores, patients with low PNI scores were generally older, and the National Institutes of Health Stroke Scale (NIHSS) score, atrial fibrillation, infection, mortality rate, and hospitalization rates were all significantly higher. Conclusions: In this study, we discovered that patients with poor PNI had a considerably increased rate of infection development. It is vital to evaluate the nutritional status of patients with acute ischemic stroke during hospitalization.
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Chronic neuropathic pain (CNP), a complex and debilitating condition arising from damage or dysfunction of the somatosensory nervous system, affects millions of people worldwide [...].